The Women’s March Drew a Much Larger Crowd Than Trump’s Inauguration

On October 8, the Washington Postpublished a tape of the Republican presidential nominee bragging about his talent for getting away with sexual assault. The next day, pundits and politicians from across the political spectrum left Donald Trump’s candidacy for dead. The only question now was whether America’s disgust with the GOP standard-bearer would wipe out his co-partisans down-ballot — many of whom scrambled to distance themselves from the would-be pussy grabber-in-chief.

And then Trump won. And feminists across the United States were provided with a potent reminder of their nation’s tolerance for misogyny — and of the profound threat that the modern GOP poses to the health, economic security, and reproductive freedom of American women.

So, on the day after Trump’s inauguration, millions of women across the country and globe marched in defense of the rights they currently possess — and to demand those that they have yet to secure.

In Washington, D.C., the Women’s March brought a larger crowd to the National Mall than Trump’s Inauguration had the day before.

So many Chicagoans turned out to express their solidarity with those whose rights are threatened by Trump’s election, organizers were forced to cancel their plan to march through the city’s downtown, due to public safety concerns.

And the marches extended across the Atlantic. Less than 24 hours after the new president’s belligerently nationalistic speech, marchers in Paris, London, Lisbon, Tokyo, and countless other cities affirmed the value of collective, international struggle.

Photo: Eric Feferberg/AFP/Getty Images

Thousands of people have gathered outside the US Embassy for the Women's March on London - speeches underway pic.twitter.com/jvV2Zgv85E

It’s early days for the anti-Trump resistance. Mass demonstrations are no guarantee of sustained organization and engagement. But the organizers of the Women’s March have articulated a broad vision of the society they wish to struggle for — one that would guarantee greater freedom and security not only for women, but for all those who suffer from disadvantages based in their race, sexuality, gender identity, immigration status, or class position.

That vision — and the millions that it helped mobilize — offers some hope to all who fear the journey our country has just embarked on.